Accessibility in the News– October 4, 2019.

NOTE: To get news like this every week in your inbox, before it hits our website, subscribe to our Accessibility in the News e-newsletter. There are no ads or graphics, and we never send spam. Just use the sign-up form on this page to subscribe and stay up to date!

Skip to National News (U.S.) | Skip to International News

More Accessibility Resources on this Page

Accessibility Blogs and Information | Accessibility Statement Pages
Accessibility Announcements and Products | Accessibility Q&A and Tips

Microassist Accessibility Services

AITN Quote of the Week

“Your success and happiness lies in you. Resolve to keep happy, and your joy and you shall form an invincible host against difficulties.” — Helen Keller

National Disability Employment Awareness Month 2019

National News (U.S.)

Yahoo Finance App Makes Charts Accessible To The Blind

September 26, 2019 | Source: Media Post |

Yahoo Finance is making its stock charts on iOS and Android apps accessible to the blind and visually impaired. It went live yesterday. Verizon Media’s accessibility team partnered with Yahoo Finance to develop a tool to allow anyone using the app and their device’s screen reader to get that information. “This project is a huge leap forward in ensuring the insights available to sighted users with a quick glance at a financial graph are as accessible for people with vision impairment,” Joanna Lambert, general manager of finance, tech, autos and membership at Verizon Media, told Publishers Daily…

Computing committee upset about not being consulted on electronic accessibility policy

September 26, 2019 | Source: University Times- University of Pittsburgh |

Members of the Senate Computing and Information Technology Committee were upset to find that Pitt’s proposed new “Electronic Information Technology Accessibility” policy (ensuring that webpages, software and hardware are usable by those with visual, dexterity and other disabilities) had bypassed their committee’s official review. So they undertook their own. At their Sept. 16 meeting, committee members wanted to know: Will faculty or University administrators be responsible for finding issues and bringing webpages and software up to accessibility standards?…

Subway accessibility would benefit from proposed zoning changes, speaker Johnson says

September 27, 2019 | Source: amNY and MassTransitMag |

Report suggests looking to zoning to speed up subway accessibility; map shows which lines lag

September 30, 2019 | Source: 6Sqft |

Changes to the city’s zoning rules could greatly expand the accessibility of the New York subway system at a fraction of the cost to the MTA, City Council Speaker Corey Johnson hopes. In a new report, Johnson outlines still vague proposals to expand through zoning the number of areas where developers are permitted to bulk up the size of their projects in exchange for undertaking accessibility upgrades in nearby subway stations. Only a limited number of areas are currently zoned for that. The speaker also suggested speeding up the lengthy approval process for allowing such accessibility projects once the areas are rezoned…

Why the fate of online accessibility may rest with a Domino’s Pizza lawsuit

September 27, 2019 | Source: CNET |

When the Americans with Disabilities Act was passed in 1990, the internet wasn’t yet a critical part of our lives. We weren’t connected to it 24/7, and we didn’t rely on it to handle everyday tasks and provide a steady stream of information. Times have changed. Today, we depend on the internet to carry out a variety of functions, from paying our bills to booking travel to keeping in touch with family and friends. Just about every resource is accessible with the touch of a button, and it’s become nearly impossible to separate the digital world from the physical…

Accessible for all is the mantra of Paoli rail station after $48M remake

September 26, 2019 | Source: The Philadelphia Tribune |

One of SEPTA’s busiest Regional Rail stations just got an upgrade. The authority, Amtrak, PennDOT, and the Federal Transit Administration joined forces to complete a $48 million initiative to make Paoli station accessible to all riders. Passengers can experience a new high-level center platform, new elevators, stairs and ramps, a pedestrian overpass, and parking lot improvements. The rehab also brought improvements to the existing building and upgrades in rail infrastructure designed to make the station compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act…

Judi Stallings’ plan brings access to all theatergoers

September 27, 2019 | Source: Houston Chronicle |

If you’re around the Hobby Center for the Performing Arts on the night of a show, you’ll notice pockets of yellow buzzing about the theater. The gold-colored shirts are easy to spot, as they’re supposed to be. “You see them by the valet and in the breezeway, down by the garage,” says Judi Stallings, director of education and community engagement at the Hobby Center. Stallings is the mastermind behind the Access Team, the 60-person squad of specially trained volunteers inside those bright shirts…

Airbnb, ADA are on a collision course

September 27, 2019 | Source: Barnstable Patriot |

You never know when you’ll come to love the Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA). For me, it was just over five years ago, when I became a wheelchair-using paraplegic. Also, when my 85-year-old mother used a wheelchair before and after her hip replacement. And again when my 7-year-old’s friend broke a leg skiing and had to use a chair for a while. You just never know, do you? The ADA guarantees people with disabilities the same opportunities as everyone else to participate in the mainstream of American life. Any entity open to the public is a public accommodation and has to remove barriers that keep me out…

Every Philly polling place will soon be accessible to voters with physical disabilities and mobility issues

September 28, 2019 | Source: The Philadelphia Inquirer |

This November, for the first time, every polling place in Philadelphia will be accessible to voters with physical disabilities and mobility issues. It’s an unexpected effect — call it collateral benefit — of the city’s purchasing new touchscreen voting machines that critics argue are expensive and less secure than alternatives. The new machines can’t be carried up stairs because of their size and weight. As a result, city elections officials were forced to find polling places that allow the machines to be wheeled up ramps…

Dating Online While Disabled

September 28, 2019 | Source: Rebellious Magazine for Women |

Dating is full of potential land mines for anyone. This is especially true for those of us who have disabilities and chronic illnesses. While this may not be at the forefront of everyone’s minds, the disabled population is growing. According to the CDC, we make up a quarter of all adult Americans as of 2018. The reality is that, between injuries and illnesses, the number of disabled people in the US and abroad is going to continue to increase. As someone who has been disabled most of my life, every date I’ve gone on and potential partner I’ve talked to has involved a disability dynamic that many people aren’t familiar with experiencing…

Accessible adventure: how travel is becoming more inclusive

September 28, 2019 | Source: National Geographic |

For Carrie-Ann Lightley, abseiling in the Lake District wasn’t exactly top of the list of activities she was planning to tackle any time soon. As a wheelchair user, there are certain adventures it’s easy to write-off as non-starters. Although, in this case, the barriers were more mental than physical. “I’m not the most adventurous person,” says Carrie-Ann, who works for the AccessAble accessibility guide and also provides advice for disabled travellers on her personal blog. “I was a bit reluctant.”…

Why much of the internet is closed off to blind people

September 28, 2019 | Source: BBC News |

As our everyday world moves increasingly online, the digital landscape presents new challenges for ensuring accessibility for the blind. A recent court challenge against Domino’s pizza may be a watershed case guiding the rights of disabled people on the internet, writes James Jeffrey. Each swipe 17-year-old Maysie Gonzales makes on her smart phone is accompanied by what sounds like the famous Stephen Hawking voice barking out orders at a relentless pace. “Sometimes I speed it up to 350 words a minute, it depends what mood I am in,” says Ms Gonzales, who lost her sight when she was two years old through retinal cancer…

Off-road wheelchairs make hunting accessible

September 28, 2019 | Source: Rapid City Journal |

It was love at first hunt between Becky Noble and off-road wheelchairs. “I used one several years ago when I went on an antelope hunt in Nevada,” says Noble, a 41-year-old Minnesota native who now works as club-membership manager for Cabela’s in Rapid City. “It was an awesome experience. And after that, I was very adamant about wanting to hunt from a tracked chair.” A car accident 23 years ago left Noble paralyzed from the waist down. But it didn’t diminish her passion for the outdoors or her determination to live life as fully and independently as possible…

Create gardens accessible to all

September 29, 2019 | Source: Coos Bay World |

Gardening is one of the more therapeutic things a person can do – emotionally, mentally and physically – but for some it seems out of reach. Good design and practices can make gardening accessible for everyone. “We all have challenges if we live long enough,” said Corinne Thomas-Kersting, a retired speech-language pathologist and five-year Oregon State University Extension Service Master Gardener. “We have different challenges. Even when you’re young and healthy there are things to do to prevent future disabilities.”…

Domino’s Wants to Slice Away at the Americans With Disabilities Act

September 30, 2019 | Source: Slate Magazine |

Countdown To Showdown: Domino’s Supreme Error And Why Businesses Should Do The Opposite

October 2, 2019 | Source: Forbes |

On Tuesday, the Supreme Court will decide whether to give Domino’s Pizza one last chance at its three-year fight for the right to discriminate against people who are blind and visually impaired. The pizza giant is asking the court to reexamine an appellate court decision requiring Domino’s to make its website accessible to people with disabilities. In the lawsuit at the center of the dispute, Guillermo Robles, who is blind, alleges that he was unable to order a pizza from the Domino’s website or mobile app because neither was accessible via screen readers…

Accessibility Ratings For Buildings May Help Milwaukee’s Disabled Community

October 1, 2019 | Source: WUWM |

A UW-Milwaukee center that works on disability issues is developing an online way to inform people about access to public buildings like restaurants. It’s hoped the computer system will be ready by the time the Democratic National Convention comes to town next summer. But once finished, the access ratings could be used by anyone. Inside a fast food restaurant near the UW-Milwaukee campus, there’s plenty of noise — piped-in music and a customer filling his glass with ice from the soda machine…

Dancing in different senses with ‘(in)Visible’

September 30, 2019 | Source: 48 Hills |

For many of us, going to a dance performance means going to a theater, sitting in the dark and watching the bodies move onstage. But what if you can’t see? The Jess Curtis/ Gravity company wanted to make dances that visually impaired people could enjoy, and with their newest performance, (in)Visible, Oct 3 through 13 at CounterPulse, they do that by having touch tours before the show and audio descriptions of what’s going happening onstage. Tiffany Taylor, one of the six visually impaired, blind, and sighted performers in (in)Visible, studied theater in college…

King County only has 50 wheelchair accessible taxi medallions. Advocates have wanted more for years.

October 1, 2019 | Source: SeattlePI |

Clark Matthews was getting off a ferry in Seattle after traveling to Victoria, B.C. for a visit. It was late, so Matthews, who has used a wheelchair his whole life, tried to get a taxi to pick him up and take him home. He watched as the rest of the passengers filed off the boat and quickly found a ride. But as time went on, he still wasn’t able to get a cab that could accommodate his wheelchair. “We were the first ones off that boat, everyone promptly had an Uber, a Lyft or a cab pick them up. The staff went home, and we were still there in an empty parking lot at 10:30 at night,” Matthews said…

Mattel’s Uno Braille Hits Target Shelves, But Does It Miss The Point?

October 1, 2019 | Source: Peter Slatin- Forbes |

Mattel Releases Uno Braille For Visually Impaired Players

October 1, 2019 | Source: Newsweek and The Mighty and The Gamer and Geek and Happy Mag and FOX 5 Atlanta |

It’s happened again: A major manufacturer of children’s entertainment and learning products is releasing a version of a popular toy or game using Braille along with print, thus enabling blind people of all ages to play and learn alongside sighted people. This time it’s Mattel, out October 1 with Uno Braille, which features braille on the corner of each card indicating the card’s color and number or action. Braille is also prominent on packaging, which provides a link to UNOBraille.com for play instructions in downloadable Braille files…

Claims For Trespass: A New Trend In Website Accessibility Cases Filed In Florida?

October 1, 2019 | Source: Cole Schotz |

Lawsuits filed under Title III of the Americans with Disabilities Act, or ADA, do not carry with them any right to money damages on behalf of the person who files the lawsuit. The person suing has no right to demand payment of money to her by the defendant. This holds true both with respect to lawsuits that are the more traditional form of such claims, alleging physical barriers on a defendant’s property, as well as the more recent variation, for lack of a better type, of ADA lawsuits—cases where a visually impaired or legally blind plaintiff sues because she allegedly cannot access someone’s website…

New tech gives visually impaired people unique experience at Denver Museum of Nature and Science

October 1, 2019 | Source: KDVR |

Some new technology is allowing visually impaired patrons to have a unique experience at the Denver Museum of Nature and Science. It’s all thanks to ‘EdgGuide,’ a micro navigation system that allows for detailed and accurate indoor navigation around the museum. “We wanted to make sure all patrons get a real robust experience either through visual or auditory,” said Mike Hess, executive director and founder of the Blind Institute of Technology. Hess, who was born blind, came up with the idea…

New York Judge Criticizes Plaintiff’s ADA Firm For Refusing to Discuss Early Settlement and Engaging in Fee-Churning Litigation Tactics

October 2, 2019 | Source: Seyfarth Shaw |

Businesses are defending record numbers of ADA Title III cases every year. A recent decision in New York underscores the challenges business face when ADA plaintiffs are more interested in protracted litigation than settlement. The number of ADA Title III lawsuits filed annually has increased more than 300 percent in the last five years. Government officials and a few judges dealing with burgeoning caseloads have taken steps to reign in abuses…

A seat at the table: Disability advocates push for better access when dining out

October 2, 2019 | Source: The Cap Times |

There’s a slight ramp up to the front door of the sunny downtown café. Wooden chairs around four- and six-top tables are sturdy but not too heavy. The toilet paper dispenser in the bathroom is below the grab bars, which makes it easier to use. Autumn Neugent appreciates all that. Yet rather than ask, for what feels like the hundredth time, for assistance opening the doors (no push buttons) or to move chairs out of the way for her wheelchair to pass, she’d rather go the long way around…

Advocates for accessibility: The Alaska employees who make flying better for everyone

October 2, 2019 | Source: Alaska Airlines |

Ray Prentice’s epiphany came when his nephew, who had been paralyzed in a motorcycle accident, arrived at Sea-Tac International Airport for a long-planned vacation to Los Angeles – only to find his power wheelchair wouldn’t fit in the plane’s cargo compartment. Captain Bryan Burks recognized the need every time he saw the anguish on a parent’s face when a child with a cognitive disability had a meltdown on a flight. For Gary Peterson, one of many pivotal realizations came at a funeral…

FCC Grants Google Fiber Limited Waiver of User Interface Accessibility Rule

October 2, 2019 | Source: Davis Wright Tremaine |

The Twenty-First Century Communications and Video Accessibility Act of 2010, which updated the Communications Act to provide persons with disabilities access to new technologies, spawned numerous rulemakings at the Federal Communications Commission (FCC). Among those were rules requiring video programming user interfaces distributed by multichannel video programming distributors (MVPD) to be accessible to visually impaired and blind individuals upon request by making nine functions used for the display or selection of multichannel video programming to be audibly accessible…

Mote’s broadcasting passion undeterred by blindness

October 2, 2019 | Source: Winston-Salem Journal |

Mike Mote has never seen a college football game. That has never stopped him from “feeling the game” as a broadcaster. Mote, who has been blind since birth, loves everything about his job as a studio host of Southern Mississippi football at the Leerfield/IMG College office in downtown Winston-Salem. He loves the challenge of doing his job, which he really calls a “cool hobby,” even though he can’t see. Technology is certainly on his side, but what he really does that others might take for granted is how well he listens to the game…

Minnesota tunesmith Gaelynn Lea plans a showcase that’s accessible in more ways than one

October 3, 2019 | Source: Minneapolis Star Tribune |

Aside from the name of one of the opening acts — Wheelchair Sports Camp — there’s no clue in the poster or digital ads for Saturday’s gig at Ordway Concert Hall as to what the artists all have in common, or how they’re different from most performers who take the stage there. And that’s exactly how headliner and organizer Gaelynn Lea wanted it. “Obviously, we’re advocating and hoping to spread a message,” said the Duluth singer/songwriter/violinist. “But that’s not all the show is about. I didn’t want people who aren’t disabled to think this isn’t for them.”…

ASL culture comes to Boston as MFA celebrates Third Annual American Sign Language Night

October 2, 2019 | Source: The Suffolk Journal |

With language tours, performances and informational networking, deaf culture was celebrated at the Museum of Fine Arts’ third annual American Sign Language night. September is International Deaf Awareness Month, and the MFA’s event on the 25th took place during the last week of the month, coinciding with the International Week of the Deaf, created in 1958 in Rome by the World Federation of the Deaf (WFD). The free event was designed to create a networking opportunity and to spread awareness of issues in the deaf/hard of hearing community, as well as to educate those who don’t identify as either…

Jack Fact — There are 13.9 million disabled people in the UK, according to the latest government statistics: that’s eight per cent of children; 19 per cent of working-age adults; and 45 per cent of pension-age adults.

Hit The Road Jack — Roma Experience Launches New Accessible Tours

International News

Cost of making businesses accessible is a hurdle, forum hears

September 26, 2019 | Source: Orillia Matters- Canada |

Ideas and frustrations regarding accessibility in the city were shared during a forum Wednesday at the Orillia Opera House. Alf Spencer, director of the outreach and strategic initiatives branch with the Accessibility Directorate of Ontario, was the guest speaker during an accessibility awareness and education seminar organized by Orillia’s accessibility advisory committee. Spencer shared some of the successes of other municipalities — strides in accessibility that might work here, too…

Creating opportunities for people with disabilities

September 26, 2019 | Source: Azertac News- Azerbaijan |

BP and its co-venturers in the Azeri-Chirag-Guneshli, Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan, Shah Deniz, and South Caucasus Pipeline today launched two new social investment initiatives in support of people with disabilities and children with special needs. The first project called “Enhancing employability of people with disabilities” is the continuation of a successful initiative completed in 2018 positively impacting employability of around 90 people with disabilities…

NZSL accessibility and the 2019 elections

September 27, 2019 | Source: OurAuckland- New Zealand |

Auckland Council received a complaint about its decision not to provide simultaneous interpretation into New Zealand Sign Language (NZSL) of its livestreamed information session for candidates on 11 July 2019. The council strives to make its communications and services accessible and the recording of the livestreamed session is available with NZSL translation on the Vote Auckland website. However, we acknowledge the impact not having accessible content available during the livestreamed session had on members of the Auckland deaf community and we would like to apologise to them…

Accessibility issues: Sharing expertise to create a more inclusive world

September 27, 2019 | Source: Planning, BIM and Construction Today- UK |

Ian Streets from About Access discusses tackling accessibility issues by educating others in order to share expert knowledge. Some people might find it strange that our training around accessibility issues even extends to showing our clients how to train others. But our view is that if someone won’t show you what they do because they’re worried you won’t need them anymore, it probably means they didn’t know much in the first place. It helps of course that our specialist subject can be very complex and open to interpretation…

‘Sometimes train drivers forget you’: How to make Melbourne more accessible for people with disabilities

September 27, 2019 | Source: The Age- Australia |

Every time Stacey Christie catches the train she has to position herself on the wheelchair symbol marked on the platform so she can catch the driver’s eye. The drivers – provided they see her – will then get off the train and set up a portable ramp for Ms Christie to board the first carriage. “Sometimes the train driver doesn’t see you and you get left behind – you have to be in the perfect position,” Ms Christie says. “I have to bang on the door often.” Some drivers are irritable and appear put out. “It is upsetting when train drivers act like you are a burden,” Ms Christie says. “People’s attitudes are a big barrier.”…

1500 polling booths to turn accessible

September 28, 2019 | Source: The Hindu- India |

Taking cognisance of the concerns raised by voters during the Lok Sabha polls, the suburban district collector has said the administration will be setting up 1,506 polling booths on the ground floor across constituencies in its jurisdiction. Milind Borikar, district collector, Mumbai (suburban), said, “There were 1,973 polling booths on higher floors during the Lok Sabha polls and we received many complaints regarding them. In line with our policy to have an ‘accessible election’, we will be shifting most of them to the ground floor by making alternative arrangements.”…

TTC Expands Discount Program To Make Public Transit More Accessible

September 27, 2019 | Source: Toronto Storeys- Canada |

Paycheque to paycheque – that’s how most Torontonians are living. And most aren’t even homeowners. To ease some of the inflated costs of living in Toronto, the TTC is expanding the eligibility of its Fair Pass Discount Program. The Fair Pass Discount Program, which is programmed onto a Presto card, is usually just available for people on Ontario Works or the Ontario Disability Support Program. So far, 150,000 residents have benefitted from the program: youth, post-secondary students, and seniors, while children ride free…

A new hope for persons with disabilities

September 28, 2019 | Source: Kuensel- Buhutan |

Pema Dorji was bedridden with a terrible toothache two days back. He wanted to visit the hospital. But it was not easy. Living alone and confined to a wheelchair, getting to the road point to catch a taxi was difficult. Pema, suffering from paralysis, waist down felt helpless when none of the taxi stopped or people stopped by to give him a lift. “I felt neglected because of my wheelchair. It would be a burden for them to help me. Helping me would mean having to carry my wheelchair.”…

The invisible impairments that stop women playing

September 28, 2019 | Source: RNZ- New Zealand |

One in four New Zealanders has a disability and many are still relegated to the sidelines of sport. But they have as much right to participate in sport and recreation as the rest of us, said Robyn Cockburn, the chair of Shift, an organisation that seeks to improve the well-being of young women in New Zealand through accessibility to sport and recreation. Ms Cockburn said that, while there’s a focus on athletes with physical impairments, there are more that have “invisible” disabilities – like ADHD, cognitive dysfunctions, chronic pain and illness and learning difficulties. And they also deserve to be participating in and accessing sport…

Nagaland behind in implementing RPwD Act 2016

September 28, 2019 | Source: Morung Express- India |

State Commissioner for Persons with Disabilities, Diethono Nakro highlighting the status of implementation Rights of Persons With Disabilities (RPwD) Act 2016 in Nagaland, pointed out that Nagaland is practically in zero level in implementation of various provisions of the act. She was presenting a PowerPoint during the sensitization and awareness campaign programme on Rights of Persons With Disabilities (RPwD) Act 2016 for head of departments and its nodal officers of Dimapur district was conducted at DC’s conference hall on September 27…

Candidates face disability issues

September 29, 2019 | Source: Otago Daily Times- New Zealand |

While some local body election candidates show a good grasp of the issues facing Dunedin’s disabled community, others ‘‘could do better’’. That’s the assessment of Dunedin and Districts Disabled Persons Assembly kaituitui-community networker Chris Ford, in the wake of three disabilityfocused candidate forums held over three days last week. Candidates contesting seats on the Dunedin City Council, Otago Regional Council and Southern District Health Board took part in the ‘‘My Votes Count’’ forums…

Making Australia’s most liveable city more inclusive

September 29, 2019 | Source: Pursuit- Australia |

Making Melbourne more inclusive for people with disability

September 30, 2019 | Source: Mirage News- Australia |

Stacey’s challenge navigating the city is just one example of many experienced by Australians with a disability who have accessibility needs. And that needs to change. As a result, the City of Melbourne and Melbourne Disability Institute at the University of Melbourne have been collaborating to improve accessibility in and around the city for people with disability by gathering evidence that can go on to inform key policy. By bringing people with disability together with local government, advocacy groups and academics, we were able to identify ways to make the City of Melbourne more inclusive for people with disability…

Prince George provides feedback for new accessibility legislation

September 29, 2019 | Source: CKPG Today- Canada |

B.C’s Minister of Social Development and Poverty Reduction visited Prince George on Saturday. Minister Shane Simpson made the trip to Northern B.C as part of his consultation tour around the province to seek feedback when it comes to the new accessibility legislation. The two and a half-hour open house was held at Duchess Park Secondary School and allowed residents to not only provide their feedback but to also give their input on what needs to be included in the legislation…

A plea to make Bhopal an ‘accessible’ Smart City

September 30, 2019 | Source: The Hindu- India |

In 2012, an international child rights agency offered a unique opportunity to Poonam Shroti, who was desperately looking for a break from a dull corporate job. She excitedly reached the interview spot — a multi-storeyed hotel, with her mother pushing the wheelchair. But the absence of a ramp as well as a lift left her dispirited, and she came back home feeling rejected. “I tell myself it wasn’t worth it in the first place. This showed they didn’t care about disability,” says Ms. Shroti, who has osteogenesis imperfecta, a bone disorder that has rendered her 100% disable. “Don’t let a disabled feel disabled, and you end up empowering them.”…

Labour Congress Launches Sensitization Manual for People Living With Disabilities

September 30, 2019 | Source: Liberian Daily Observer- West Africa |

The Liberia Labour Congress (LLC) has launched a Sensitization Manual for the inclusion and accessibility of people living with disabilities in Liberia for employment at workplaces in the country. Performing the ceremony on behalf of Labour Minister Moses Y. Kollie, Deputy Labour Minister for Manpower Planning, Atty. Phil Tarpeh Dixon, commended the LLC for developing a manual that is intended to promote the rights of people living with disabilities at workplaces in the country…

Charities aim to unlock history and heritage for people with dementia

September 30, 2019 | Source: Aberdeen Evening Express- UK |

The National Trust has united with Alzheimer’s Society to make all of its 500 historic and countryside sites dementia-friendly – the first project of its kind for the trust. It will improve the accessibility of National Trust sites for all visitors and see upgrades at some properties, including developing dementia services and taking heritage to care homes and hospitals. Staff and volunteers will be given the opportunity to join Alzheimer’s Society’s three million Dementia Friends, a programme aiming to change perceptions of dementia…

Ontario Making Education More Accessible for Students

September 30, 2019 | Source: Government of Ontario News and Newmarket Today- Canada |

Ontario is making its education system more inclusive to help all students reach their full potential in an accessible and supportive learning environment. When the education system is not accessible, students are left out, impacting their participation in the school experience. That is why Raymond Cho, Minister for Seniors and Accessibility, and Stephen Lecce, Minister of Education, announced key actions the government is taking to help make schools more inclusive and accessible for everyone. Today also marks the deadline for submissions by school boards for the government’s Capital Priorities Program…

Request for the United Nations to create World Universal Accessibility Day

September 30, 2019 | Source: FC Barcelona- Spain |

The Alliance for World Universal Accessibility Day, formed by FC Barcelona, the Barça Foundation, the ‘la Caixa’ Bank Foundation, Barcelona City Council and Mapp4all Universal Accessibility have put together a request that will be sent to the United Nations to ask the international organisation to declare 30 September as World Universal Accessibility Day. During the announcement of the petition, an event which took place at the 1899 Auditorium at Camp Nou, the request letter was presented to Joan Clos, the person who will be responsible for delivering the message to the United Nations…

Prominent figures from films, industry back petition to make Mumbai accessible for people with disabilities

October 2, 2019 | Source: NewzHook- India |

Two petitions in the Bombay High Court by Nisha JamVwal and Abha Singh seem to have finally got municipal authorities in Mumbai to take a serious look at infrastructure and accessibility shortfalls in the financial capital. Not only as it got residents from far corners of the city involved, prominent names from the world of business and movies are backing the petitions. That’s our focus on #StoryOfTheWeek. Some of India’s prominent voices from business and films are calling out the major shortcomings that exist when it comes to accessibility infrastructure across the country…

Making our cities more accessible for people with disability is easier than we think

October 2, 2019 | Source: The Conversation- Australia |

You would think a city that each year hosts Australia’s largest conference for people with disability would be the most accessible for all people. Not according to our research which highlights 119 issues that need fixing if Geelong, Victoria, wants to be a model “city for all”. Clearly there’s a shortfall between aspiration and reality, which is surprising given that in the last Census count, about 6% of Geelong’s population reported they needed help because of disability. That’s higher than the national figure of 5.1%…

Disabled consumers left logged out of retail’s digital revolution

October 2, 2019 | Source: Computer Weekly- UK |

There have been some standout moves by UK retailers to cater for customers with disabilities in their stores this year. Grocer Sainsbury’s renamed its Bath store “Signsbury’s” for four days in July, as part of an initiative to encourage people to learn and use sign language in the supermarket. Home Bargains started 2019 by introducing a weekly “quiet hour” to provide a more welcoming environment for shoppers with autism across all its UK stores. Every Saturday from 9-10am, the general merchandise chain switches off music and is working with the National Autistic Society charity to continue its supportive approach…

Candidates talk accessibility issues at CNIB town hall- CityNews- Canada (Video)

Winnipeggers seeking election in three ridings, from four different parties came together to talk accessibility issues at a town hall organized by the CNIB. Xiaoli Li was there…

Thousands of mosques now disabled-friendly

October 3, 2019 | Source: Daily Sabah- Turkey |

Turkey’s Presidency of Religious Affairs (DİB) announced that nearly 20,000 mosques in the country now have better accessibility for the faithful with disabilities. DİB, which oversees the mosques in 81 provinces of the country, launched an initiative in 2012 for “disabled-friendly mosques,” to install lifts and modified entrances to places of worship. The presidency aims to have at least one mosque in each district of each province partially rebuilt to address the needs of the disabled. They install wheelchair lifts, modified fountains to perform ablution and lavatories for the disabled…

Riding the rails in a wheelchair: Rating O-Train for accessibility

October 3, 2019 | Source: Ottawa Citizen- Canada |

When the Confederation Line first opened, Max Brault was too scared to ride it. “That seems funny for a grown man to say he was too scared to take the LRT, but if something were to happen I’d be stuck in there,” said Brault, 49, who has used a wheelchair since his 20s because of his degenerative spinal muscular atrophy. But after a close friend who was an eye for potential barriers gave the train the thumbs up, Brault went all in. “It gets a good A+ from me,” Brault said after an unofficial and informal audit with this newspaper of the LRT’s accessibility…

Trains: Extra 6500 passenger spaces a week on Valley lines

October 3, 2019 | Source: BBC News- Wales |

Space on trains for up to 6,500 more commuters a week on Valley lines has been announced by Transport for Wales (TfW) from December. But the Welsh Government is to request a delay in introducing new regulations to make trains accessible for people with disabilities. This is due to a backlog in train orders that has an impact throughout the UK. TfW said Valley lines would see more four-carriage trains on peak services. The Welsh Government-owned body is also introducing additional trains right across the Wales and Borders rail network, and carriages on some train services have been upgraded…

University of Mumbai student is India’s first blind woman with PhD in German studies

October 4, 2019 | Source: Hindustan Times- India |

When it was time for Sunil and Shubha Jangam to enrol their daughter Urvi, who was born without sight, into school, they took her to a school for the blind. At the time, they’d thought Urvi’s blindness would be a disability, but as it turned out, there would be no holding Urvi back. After a stellar academic career, last week, Urvi, 31, became the first blind female student in India to be awarded a PhD in German studies. Even as a child, Urvi, who chose not to learn Braille, was determined to not be treated differently…

Mild Deafness In Children May Have Permanent Effects On How Brain Processes Sound: Study

October 3, 2019 | Source: News Nation- England |

Mild to moderate hearing loss in early childhood can cause permanent changes to how sounds are processed in the brain — similar to the effects of deafness since birth — according to a study. The findings of the study, published in the journal eLife, may have implications for how mild to moderate hearing loss in infants can be managed by healthcare providers. The researchers, including those from the University of Cambridge in the UK, used an electroencephalogram (EEG) to measure the brain responses of 46 children diagnosed with permanent mild-to-moderate hearing loss while they were listening to sounds.

Accessibility Blogs and Information

Accessibility Announcements and Products

Accessibility Forums, Tips, and Gaming

Accessibility Statements

Microassist Digital Accessibility Services

Have you received an accessibility demand letter because of your website or application? Please contact us for any questions you have about our accessibility services and how we might support your organization.

Services include:

Accessible Website and Application Development— We rely heavily on accessibility best practices and using HTML5 and ARIA (Accessible Rich Internet Applications) standards to build WCAG-compliant and human-tested accessible environments. Our teams are proficient in open source technologies such as WordPress, Drupal and Moodle, as well as custom frameworks in .NET, PHP, AngularJS, and other frameworks. Our Learning and Development team can also help you create accessible custom training.
Accessible Document Services— Whether you’re dealing with a few or a warehouse of Microsoft Office documents, PDFs, or other files, there are several ways Microassist can enable your team to offer documents and materials that meet stringent accessibility standards.
Accessibility Remediation— Our accessibility remediation services help you fix existing materials so that they conform to WCAG, Section 504 and 508, Department of Education OCR, and ADA Title II/III requirements. We remediate websites, applications, documents, and elearning, recommending re-creation when that is more efficient and economical. Especially for website and applications, to find out what is in need of remediation, we’ll start with an Accessibility Audit.
Accessibility Training— With several courses available for developers, testers, and content creators, your team can become equipped to consistently and expertly produce accessible digital products and online environments.
VPAT^®Evaluation Services— Primarily used by government purchasers and government vendors during the procurement and sale of ICT products and services under Section 508, a Voluntary Product Accessibility Template^® (VPAT) attests to the accessibility of a given product or service. Contact us to make sure the VPAT you write or review is accurate and meaningful.

Learn More About Digital Accessibility

Our Digital Accessibility Digest blog covers our Accessibility in the News archives as well as expert commentaries on digital accessibility issues.

Our most popular commentaries include:

Icons representing government and technology, with caption "What is a VPAT?"

Subscribe to Accessibility in the News

Stay informed! Get your weekly update on digital accessibility standards, private and public sector trends, litigation, events, and more.

Name(Required)

First Last

Work Email(Required)

Job Title(Required)

Organization(Required)

Name

This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.